….

  The taxi came to a stop outside the restaurant, pulling Regal from his thoughts.

  He stepped out, taking in the warmly lit fa?ade and the lively chatter filtering through the gss doors. The entire crew was here, everyone from the lighting teis to the lead actors.

  That was how he wa.

  Success wasn't the work of a single individual, and Regal uood the importance nizing every hand that had shaped the film.

  As he approached, ughter and ss of versation filled the air. Through the gss, he spotted familiar faces, their expressions rexed, their smiles easy.

  The atmosphere inside was celebratory.

  Taking a steady breath, he pushed the door open.

  The momeepped inside, a sharp gaze locked onto him.

  Seren - his sister.

  She stood he entrance, arms crossed, her signature look of disapproval firmly in pce.

  "You didn't wear the suit I gave you?" She pined, her gaze sweeping over his outfit.

  Regal gnced down at himself - he already knew what she was seeing. A sleek, geometric-print button-up, slim tapered jeans, and sneakers with a futuristic design. A decade ahead of its time, at least in this timeline.

  It was stylish, sure, but not quite the formal attire Seren had painstakingly chosen for the occasion.

  "It's not like we ihe press." He replied.

  By now, heads had turned, and the room collectively noticed his arrival.

  "Yep, that's definitely something Regal would say." - someone quipped from the back.

  "No doubt about it." - another chimed in, ughter following soon after.

  And then, a pyful shout rose from the crowd. "Don't worry, Regal, we don't judge you!"

  Regal smirked, firing back. "Elias, you don't have a girlfrie, so your opinio matter."

  A chorus of exaggerated reas followed.

  "Hahhaa…"

  "Hah…"

  "Haahhhaaaaaa…"

  Laughter rippled through the room, the energy shifting into something livelier, more iious. Even the quieter ones found themselves grinning.

  "Hey, what does not having a girlfriend have to do with this?" - the same voice called out, modignant.

  "There is a lot to do with it, man." - someone else chuckled.

  Another voice chimed in. "Wait, Mike, don't you also not have a girlfriend?"

  Meanwhile, Regal moved through the crowd, exging greetings and quick words with crew members.

  Seren trailed behind, her unimpressed expression firmly in pce. Yet, even she couldn't ighe effect Regal had on those around him.

  For all his rough edges, his presence subtly altered the atmosphere, steadying the energy while somehow heightening it at the same time.

  As Regal sed the room, his gaze moved over the gathering, taking in every detail.

  On one side, Keanu stood at the tre of a group, talking with his usual enthusiasm.

  Beside him, Andrew nodded along, occasionally chiming in.

  Off to the side, Grace stood in her usual quiet presence, the room with a calm demeanor. Simon, who had pyed a supp role in the film, stood o her, exging words with Zack, the editor.

  Tom, the middle-aged actor who had portrayed the police officer, leaned against a nearby table, a drink in hand and a rexed smile on his face.

  Out of the er of his eye, Regal also noticed Ben and Darren. There was still a bit of tensioween them, but with drinks in their hands, it didn't seem like anything serious.

  As Regal made his way towards the tre of the room, something caught his eye, a chair.

  Not just any chair, but a director's chair, pced right in the middle of the gathering.

  It wasn't anything fano decorative details or fshy design.

  Just a pin, practical chair, yet it stood out, anding attention in a way that felt deliberate.

  Regal arched his brow. "What is this?"

  Before anyone else could answer, Keanu broke away from his group, grinning as he approached. "What? Feeling touched already?"

  Simon smirked, jumping in befal could respond.

  "It was Grace's idea." He said, nodding towards the quiet girl standing off to the side. "You know, since you barely had a ce to sit in the director's chair during produ. Always running around with that heavy camera."

  Regal's gaze flicked to Grace. As expected, she said nothing, only gng away as if the versation didn't her. But the faint blush dusting her cheeks gave her away.

  "Haa…" Regal let out a half-sigh, half-ugh. Stepping closer, he pced a hand on the back of the chair, running his fingers over the smooth wood. "Well, at least it's good to know someoiced how much work I was doing."

  Keanu cpped a hand on his back. "Don't get all seal on us now. You are already hard enough to deal with without addiions into the mix."

  Laughter rippled through the room, and Regal couldn't help but smirk. "Yeah, no ce of that. I just didn't think you lot actually cared."

  Regal took a moment to look around at everyone, his crew, his team, the people who had worked tirelessly t [Following] to life. He was never one fraures, but something about this, the simplicity of it, left an impact.

  Finally, Regal added. "Alright, let's see if this chair is as fortable as it looks."

  "Horaayyyy!!" - "Wooohhh!"

  The moment he sank into it, the crew erupted into cheers, some g, others tossing out pyful jabs.

  "Look at him, finally taking his rightful throne!" Keanu teased, lifting his drink in an exaggerated toast.

  Regal smirked, leaning back with exaggerated ease. "Alright, enough of that. We're here to celebrate. Someone hand me a drink."

  Simon was already a step ahead, holding out a bottle. "Figured you would ask. Here."

  Taking it, Regal pushed himself to his feet, raising the bottle high. "To all of you, for making [Following] what it is today. Cheers!"

  Cheers erupted again, louder this time, as the crew toasted, king gsses, bottles, and even pstic cups together.

  "Tal!" someone called out from the back.

  "To [Following]!" Andrew added, his voice carrying over the crowd.

  Grad Zack had joihe cirow, and Grace shot him a sidelong look. "You barely sted a minute in that chair."

  "Yeah, well." Regal said, holding up the bottle with a shrug. "I work better on my feet."

  "Spoken like a true workaholic." Zack muttered, shaking his head.

  The atmosphere remained charged with energy, versation flowing freely as ughter and stories passed between them.

  Regal moved through the crowd, exging nods and words of appreciation with Keanu, Andrew, Grace, Simon, Zack, and Tom, the people who had poured their time and effort into the film.

  Then, a vibration in his pocket.

  He pulled out his phone, gng at the s. An unknown number.

  He hesitated for a moment before slipping it bato his pocket.

  Tonight wasn't about business, it was about them.

  Just as he was about to turn away, his gaze nded on someoanding off to the side.

  When did he get here?

  Long blonde hair, a polite but somewhat reserved smile, ohat barely cealed how out of pce he looked.

  Ludwig G?ransson.

  Regal frowned slightly. He had made sure to greet everyone, yet he was certain Ludwig hadn't been here earlier.

  Without a sed thought, he set his drink down and made his way toward him.

  Ludwig blinked, visibly caught off guard as Regal approached.

  "Hey, Ludwig. Guess your sense of time is even worse than mine." Regal greeted him with an easy smirk.

  A few people nearby gnced over, briefly curious about whal was talking to. But from his casual tohey quickly assumed the newer must be someone important to him.

  Ludwig let out a short chuckle. "Yeah, my bad. Had some st-minute sound mixing for the episode."

  Regal waved it off. "Nah, I am just messing with you." He turned back toward the others and raised his voice. "Hey guys, I know it's te, but this here is Ludwig G?ransson, the guy behind the music for [Following]."

  A brief pause, then reition clicked.

  "Ohh! Wele to the crew, man!"

  "Yeah, good to finally meet you!"

  "Dude, your work on the film was amazing."

  Ludwig's shoulders rexed a little as he nodded in appreciation, his smile being more natural.

  "..."

  But the initial burst of greetings faded just as quickly as it came, leaving behind an awkward silehe kind that happens when people finally meet someohey have only heard about.

  Even Regal's closest crew, including Keanu, had never actually met Ludwig in person - they had praised his work and aowledged his tribution, but he still felt like an outsider.

  Uhe rest of them, he hadn't spent a month together o, sharing te-night shoots, inside jokes, and exhaustion-fueled bonding.

  Regal picked up on it immediately.

  Without missing a beat, he cpped a firm hand on Ludwig's bad nudged him forward. "Alright, I have got an idea."

  Ludwig barely had time to process befal tinued, ign the questioning looks. "Let's have Ludwig sing a song for us."

  Ludwig's head snapped up. "Wait, what—?"

  Regal was already moving. He pulled out his phone, shot a quick signal to the DJ, then turo Seren. "Seren, record this for me, will you?"

  Before Ludwig could object, a mic was shoved into his hands.

  "…Sing?" He stared at it, then at the expet faces around him.

  "Yeah, ma's have them hear what they missed in the film." Regal's voice carried a knowing edge.

  And just like that, Ludwig uood.

  The song.

  The ohey had poured their hearts into, the o for [Following], was only to be scrapped at the st minute for many following reasons.

  Budget. Deadline.

  …and most importantly, Regal couldn't find the voice for it - a professional vocalist.

  He had fought for it, argued with Regal, frustrated that something so important had been tossed aside.

  Regal had promised it would make it onto the DVD release. Ludwig had agreed, not out of certainty, but out of hope.

  Because he didn't want this song, his best work, to gather dust in some fotten folder.

  Something abal's lyrics, the way they bled into the film's characters, had moved him in a way he couldn't quite expin. It was rare to find that kind of synergy, and he wanted people to hear it.

  And noarently, they would.

  The awkward tension from before had shifted, curiosity and anticipation filling the spastead. Even Keanu, who had been quietly sizing Ludwig up from the side, leaned in with i.

  The DJ queued up the track. A familiar hum filled the speakers.

  Ludwig hesitated for just a sed, then stepped forward, adjusting his grip on the mic.

  The first chords hit, stripped-down.

  The murmurs died. The air tightened.

  Then Ludwig's voice, low aive at first, cut through the silence like a whisper against static.

  "Ooooooh—stop…"His voice was soft at first, barely above a whisper.

  "With your feet in the air and your head on the groundTry this trid spin it, yeah…Your head will colpseBut there's nothing in itAnd you'll askOh, where is my mind?Oh, where is my mind?Oh, where is my mind?"

  Ludwig's voice carried through the room, no loentative.

  The words lingered, more than just lyrics, they were a question that had no real answer.

  "I think I am alone now,The crowd has gone home now,I think I am alone now,The crowd has gone home now…Oh, where is my mind?"The melody settled over the crowd like a slow, rolling tide. This was the soul of the song, the version that never made it into the film, stripped of studio polish, left raw and ag.

  As the song s end, the DJ looped the outro, a dissonant, feedback-drenched riff humming through the speakers. The room vibrated with it, a stark trast to the smooth, radio-friendly score that had made it into the final cut.

  Ludwig's voice dropped to a whisper, the edges frayed, trembling.

  "Oh, where is my mind?Oh, where is my mind?Oh, where is my mind?"

  Then, silence.

  For a heartbeat, the entire room stood still.

  Then, one cp.

  Keanu.

  Another. And another.

  The appuse swelled into a roar, rippling through the space, turning into a standing ovation that shook the floorboards.

  A voice from the back rang out, clear and insistent.

  Ludwig stood there, frozen, the mic still in his hand.

  Regal lunged forward, spping him on the back with a grin. "That was freaking awesome!"

  But Ludwig wasn't looking at Regal. His gaze locked onto Seren's phone s, catg the faces in the crowd, teary, awestruck, ected.

  The moment the appuse began to fade, Keanu stepped closer, his expression still caught between disbelief and something close to reverehat's the song you cut?"

  Regal grinned, nodding. "Not for long. DVD release. Promise."

  Ludwig swallowed hard, his throat tight.

  The song wasn't fotten anymore.

  ....

  [Song Name: Pixies - Where Is My Mind]

  ….

  [To be tinued…]

  ★─────??★??─────★

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